The Ramen Seller
by Grand Wolf
Summary: Teuchi opens his ramen bar and finds himself reflecting on the past and his interactions with a certain orange-wearing ninja. One-shot WARNING: Some spoilers


A\N: this is a little story I thought of suddenly and decided to write. It has a few spoilers in it, so be warned.

The keys in my hand jingle a bit as I open the door to my shop. I take a deep breath and begin making preparations to open. I've been doing this for more than twenty years now. Every day, I come here and open my little ramen shop. Every day I see customers come in and out.

I feel like a part of history sometimes. I have ninjas among my regular customers. Nearly every notable shinobi in the village has stopped here at least once for lunch. The legendary Jiraiya, a man many people consider to be more legend than man, has eaten at my shop.

Of course I'm proud of my little shop and my customer base. That's why I do it. The shinobi protect my home, it's only right that I do my best to provide them with a nice hot bowl of ramen when they return from a mission.

My daughter follows behind me as I begin making preparations. Making sure the pans are ready for cooking, taking a quick inventory of supplies. She mentions in an aside that some of the ingredients will start to go bad soon, so I decide on today's specials based around that.

I'm proud of who comes in my shop. The customer that makes me the most proud, however, isn't Jiraiya or any other jonin. It's a bratty little kid, a kid named Naruto.

I remember the first time he ever came to my shop. He was barely tall enough to climb up onto one of the stools. Apparently he had just enough money to buy a bowl of what he called 'real ramen'. He said he'd eaten the instant stuff plenty of times, but wanted to try the real stuff.

I knew instantly who he was. Everyone in the village knows the situation, at least, all of the adults do. I remember him looking up at me, as if he needed somebody, anybody to accept him, even a little.

I hated him, I admit it. My wife died during the kyuubi's attack so many years ago. It was a random, senseless act by a rampaging monster. To think that this little boy somehow contained that horrible thing made my blood cold.

I thought about turning him down, but then I remembered Hokage-sama's words. This boy, Naruto, was the container of the beast, not the kyuubi itself. I listened to his order, and considered what to do.

"Dad, do you want me to start it?" Ayame said to me. She was, maybe ten at the time? Just old enough to start cooking on her own. Then something sharp hit me, and I realized something.

Ayame's mother died when she wasn't much older than Naruto was at that time. I remember the long nights, the crying, the anguish she suffered from losing her mother. I remember wishing with all my heart that I could help ease her pain.

I don't know who Naruto's parents were. From everything I've heard, the boy was an orphan. I took Ayame's pain from losing her mother, and realized what it would be like never to have parents, or friends.

I sighed and began to cook for him. Especially then, Naruto was a ball of energy. I remember thinking that he was a cute kid. I heard about how he occasionally pulled pranks, even back then.

When the food was done and I put it in front of him, Naruto thanked me and set on the bowl with more enthusiasm than I think I've ever seen.

Once he was done, he looked up at me with the biggest smile I think I've ever seen. He started praising my ramen as if it were the food of the Daimyos. I smiled and thanked him for his kindness. With that, Naruto hopped off of the stool and ran off.

Naruto kept coming back, as often as he could. He was always alone. I made sure my other customers never bothered the boy. If the questioned it I told them that the boy paid for his meals like everybody else. There was no reason to turn down good money.

Soon, though, he began coming with his teacher, Iruka. I liked Iruka immediately. He was patient with Naruto, for one thing. He was a teacher at the academy, and occasionally treated Naruto to ramen.

I remember the day he came to my restaurant with the headband on. I knew instantly what it was. Every shinobi in the village wears a shinobi headband. When a young shinobi acquires theirs, it's a sign of graduation. I felt proud of him, for graduating. Even though he's just a customer.

Shortly after that he came around with his new team and sensei. I realized with a growing sense of pride that, slowly but surely, the rest of the village was catching on to what I already knew. The kyuubi was a monster, but the kid it was inside was a good kid.

* * *

As Ayame and I gather our ingredients and prepare for the day, I sigh and look out the window. Construction crews are still hard at work rebuilding the village. I spot a few of the shinobi I know walking around, helping out.

This is why I love living here. Everyone is helping everyone out. It's an amazing feeling. My own store was damaged considerably. I was touched when Naruto himself came back and personally helped rebuild it.

"Hey, old man!" I hear suddenly, coming from the distance. I see a smiling, blond haired kid in the distance. "What's today's special?"

I rattle off the specials for the day, and Naruto orders one of his favorites. I realize, at this moment, that there are four facts in my life. I love my daughter, I love my home, I love my customers, and as far as I'm concerned, Naruto Uzumaki has always been a good kid.


End file.
